New image released from Iron Man 3

Tony is looking the worse for wear

Marvel has given its fans an early Christmas present, with a brand spanking new image from Iron Man 3 making its way onto the web.

The new image (above - click for hi-res) shows Tony Stark in his Iron Man armour looking distinctly the worse for wear after his latest bout of combat, his headpiece badly damaged and blood streaming down his face.

As you might recall from the teaser trailer, Tony's Malibu home goes up in a hail of explosions, and it seems as though the fight is being well and truly brought to our hero this time out.

Whether this particular damage has been inflicted by chief bad-guy the Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) remains to be seen, but we've rarely seen old tin-head looking so vulnerable. Maybe he needs some big green backup…

Directed by Shane Black and co-starring Rebecca Hall, Gwyneth Paltrow and Guy Pearce, Iron Man 3 will open in the UK on 26 April 2013.